Food on the Move

The average New Yorker is extremely busy, and doesn't always have time to stop in an upscale restaurant, wait for a table, wait for their server to take their order, and then wait even longer for the food to come out. No, New Yorkers need their food quick. But that doesn't mean that the quality of the food needs to be in any way compromised.

One of the greatest modern culinary inventions is the food truck. Parked right along the sidewalk, it's extremely easy for any person rushing from place to place in desperate need of a quick bite to walk up to the window, and leave with food that not only fills their empty stomach, but has them grinning for the rest of their commute. Equipped with a kitchen with only the bare necessities and a staff of passionate chefs, even in a space no larger than a family minivan, delicious foods can be made to order in the amount of time it takes to be handed a cold fast food cheeseburger from an uninspired McDonald's cashier.

Food trucks have come to dominate the streets of New York City. It seems on certain streets of Manhattan one could spot several food trucks in just a small block. Food trucks have become so massively successful as they do food the best: the tastiest most unique foods, taken to the people. What better advertising is there than having hungry pedestrians smell your culinary delights as they walk by on the street? This ingenious marketing has sucked me into trying quite a few different food trucks, but my absolute favorite food trucks in the city are those that sell Halal food.

Halal Truck- Flickr

Halal food is defined as any food that is permissible to eat according to Islamic law. With such a general constraint, a Halal truck sells a variety of hot foods. They are most well known for their all-beef hotdogs, but also sell cheeseburgers, gyros, falafel, and more. However, the only thing that I will ever order is their Chicken Over Rice. Chicken Over Rice is basically exactly what you would expect from the name: soft tender grilled chicken with a variety of unique spices over hot rice with creamy yogurt and hot sauces, and a side of salad. The chicken on top of the Chicken Over Rice has got to be the most tender chicken that I have ever eaten in my entire life, and it nearly melts in your mouth. I have also tried the Lamb Over Rice, Chicken Gyro, and Lamb Gyros, which are all great, but do not compare.

Chicken Over Rice- Flickr

While these trucks are scattered all across New York City, the ones in Brooklyn are a couple of dollars cheaper and two times tastier than the ones in Manhattan, but that should not discourage one from giving this delicious Halal food a try if passing one in Manhattan. There is a Halal truck that always parks just one block away from my home in Brooklyn, so needless to say I have Chicken Over Rice at least five times a week every time I'm on break.